Apparatus and process for closing bag and forming a handle therefor



Feb. 6, 1968 B. v. PARSONS 3,367,085

APPARATUS AND PROCESS FOR CLOSING BAG AND FORMING A HANDLE THEREFOR Filed Sept. 21, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. 52w: 1 poesoA/s BY J AGENT Feb. 6, 1968 B. v. PARSONS 3,367,085

APPARATUS AND PROCESS FOR CLOSING BAG AND FORMING A HANDLE THEREFOR Filed Sept. 21, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 23 INVENTOR I 52w: 1 1 42mm;

United States Patent 3,367,085 APPARATUS AND PROCESS FOR CLOSING BAG AND FORMING A HANDLE THEREFOR Bruce V. Parsons, Burlingame, Calif, assignor to Crown Zellerbach Corporation, San Francisco, Cahf., a corporation of Nevada Filed Sept. 21, 1965, Ser. No. 483,973 11 Claims. (Cl. 5314) This invention relates to a method and apparatus for closing bags and forming a carrying handle therein. More particularly, this invention relates to an improvedmethod for closing an open mouth flexible bag contarnmg purchased goods and forming a carrying handle in the bag, all simultaneously, and to an apparatus which is capable of stapling a reinforcing cardboard blank to the mouth portion of the bag and cutting out a lateral hand slot through the blank and the portion of the bag therebetween.

In an attempt to avoid or reduce pilferage in department stores, variety stores and the like, it is customary to staple the open end of a merchandisecontaining paper bag so that no additional goods could be inserted after the purchase has been made. It is also customary to provide in the trade, bags having a hand-hold or a handle by which a customer can carry the bag containing purchased merchandise from one place to another. However, there exists a great need in the retail trade for an efiicient apparatus capable of performing these two functions, i.e., closing of the bag and forming a handle therein simultaneously in a one-step operation which can readily be effected by a cashier or a clerk.

It is therefore a primary object of this invention to provide an apparatus of the class above described which is simple and effective and may be produced at low cost.

A further important object of the present invention is to provide an improved method of effectively closing a paper bag containing purchased merchandise thereby reducing pilferage of bagged goods and to form at the same time a convenient carrying handle.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent after considering the fol lowing detailed description of this invention in conjuncton with the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the bag closing and handle forming apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the apparatus with parts broken away.

FIG. 3 is a side elevational cross-sectional view taken on line 33 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a fragmentary upper portion of a bag closed and handle formed by the apparatus of this invention.

Referring now in detail to the drawings which illustrate the preferred embodiment of this invention, the apparatus comprises a stationary horizontal base to which are secured front knife slot segment 11 and rear knife slot segment 11a in such a manner as to form a spacing therebetween. The front knife slot segment 11 is provided with two elongated slots 19 and 21. Screws or bolts 23 and 25 are threaded through the slots 19 and 21 to adjustably secure the front knife slot segment 11 to the base 10. The rear knife slot segment 11a is fastened to the rear portion of the base 10 in a similar manner.

A knife-holder 12 which is pivotally secured by means of horizontal pivot 13 to knife-carrier 14 has detachably secured thereto a curved knife 16 by means of a plurality of screws 18. As shown in the drawings, the knife 16 has a serrated cutting edge which is disposed at an acute angle relative to the horizontal. The knife 16 is generally positioned in a plane which is substantially perpendicular to the plane of the base 10. Although a serrated knife is preferred in the practice of this invention, a conventional straight-blade knife may also be employed. Likewise it is preferred to mount the knife 16 at an acute angle of about 5 to 10 degrees between its cutting edge and the base; however, a knife may also be mounted with its edge being substantially parallel to the base. It should be noted that the combination of an angularly directed knife and a serrated edge thereof give an advantage of facilitating cutting action because of reduced pressure required by the operator. Also such combination gives as a result a clean cut in the material in which a handle is to be formed. The aforementioned angle between the knifes edge and the base may be adjusted by means of knife angle adjustment screws 17. The knife carrier 14, is mounted on base It by means of a pivot 15, and is inclined at an acute angle to the base 10 when the apparatus is not in operation.

An uprightly disposed, downwardly and frontwardly movable, hand-operated lever 22 having an upper free end is mounted above the knife-carrier 14 on a cylindrical stationary pivot 26, which passes through round aperture 24, located adjacent the lower end of the lever 22. The pivot 26 is secured to vertical block 28 which is fastened to the rear of base It) by any suitable means such as conventional bolts.

The roller 30 is mounted on shaft 32, which passes through another aperture formed also at the lower end of the lever 22 in the front portion thereof and secured by means of a bolt 34. In this manner, lever 22 is linked to the knife-carrier 14 by means of upright lift block 36 of inverted L-shape and fastened to top wall of the carrier 14 by means of bolts 38, 38 and having a laterally projecting transverse member 40 which overlies roller 30 in a manner to permit pivotal sliding movement of the member 40 with respect to the roller 30, as well as a downward and upward movement of the knife 16.

The lever 22 is maintained normally in a raised position and is connected to a coil spring 42, the upper end of which is connected to a laterally extending pin 46 which is secured to the central lower portion of lever 22, while the lower end of the spring 42 is connected to another laterally extending pin 44 secured to block 28. The spring 42 faci itates return movement of the lever 22 after it has been pressed to effect the cutting and stapling operation.

As mentioned hereinabove the knife slot segments 11 and 11a are spaced from each other in a manner to form an arcuate slot 48 in the base 10 which is centrally located to register with the cutting edge of the knife 16 when the cutting edge 20 is received within the slot 48 in the course of the cutting operation.

A stripping means is formed by a front bent wire 50 and rear bent wire 52 which are mounted horizontally adjacent to the slot 48 above the base 10 and are spaced a short distance therefrom sufficient to insert a bag between the stripping means and the base. The stripping members 50 and 52 surround the contour of the knife and permit to hold the bag down after the handle has been formed and the knife 16 is being retracted from the slot 48 to its original upright position.

Stapler members 54, 56, 58, 60, 62, and 64, which may be of any conventional construction, are mounted on the base 10 in parallel relationship with respect to each other and secured to the base 10 by means of screws 66 or bolts which pass upwardly through complemental apertures in the base portions of the staplers and slots in the base 10. In the illustrated embodiment, a pair of stapler members 54 and 56 is disposed in spaced relation to another pair of staplers 58 and 60 with the slot 48 being loctaed therebetween. The third pair of stapler members 62 and 64 is positioned in the rear portion of the base 10 with 3 the front portion of the staplers 62 and 64 being disposed rearwardly of the slot 48.

A pair of stapler actuating pins 68 and 70 extends horizontally and each pin is disposed outwardly of the knifecarrier 14. The actuating pins 63 and 70 are upwardly and operably associated with the stapler members through intermediate stapler actuating plates 72 and 76, which are pivotally mounted on horizontally disposed rod 78, functioning as a pivot for the actuating plates 72 and 76, as Well as the centrally disposed actuating plate 74 also mounted on rod 78. The rod 78 which actuates plates 72, 74 and 76 is disposed in an upright actutor pivot block 80, which is fastened to the rear of the base by means of one or more bolts 81, while the actutaing plates 72, 74 and 76 are connected to rod 78 by means of bolts 82, 84, 86 and 88 as shown in FIG. 1.

Stapler adjustment screws 90, 92, 94, 96, and 98 are threaded through front portions of each of the stapler actuating plates 72, 74 and 76 the bottom portion of each of these screws contacting the top of each stapler member 54, 56, 58, 60, 62 and 64 (the adjustment screw contacting stapler member 64 not being shown).

In operation, the manually operated lever 22 is pressed downwardly and frontwardly and actuates the knife 16 as well as the staplers 54, 56, 58, 60, 62, and 64,.all simultaneously, thereby performing the cutting and stapling operation in one stroke.

As shown in FIG. 4, a bag 100 made from paper or other flexible packaging material containing purchased goods has its open-mouth portion 102 overfolded horizontally across its entire width. An elongated reinforcing blank made of cardboard or any other suitable material of adequate stiffness and strength is folded along the lateral center thereof to form two leaves 104 substantially equal in size, the width of the leaves 164 being somewhat less than the width of the bag 100. The top edge portion of the bag 100 being overfolded along its edge is inserted between the two leaves 104 of the cardboard blank and introduced into the apparatus underneath the knife 16 with the lever 22 being in its normal upright position. Upon pressing the lever frontwardly and downwardly, both leaves 104 of the blank are secured to the bag 100 by means of staples S which are driven through the leaves 104 and the portions of the bag 1% therebetween. At the same time, the knife 16 cuts out a lateral arcuate hand slot through the central portion of both leaves 104 of the blank and the top portion of the bag 1100 inserted there between.

While, as shown in FIG. 4, the width of the blank is somewhat less than that of the bag 100, it will be readily understood that a cardboard blank of approximately equal width to that of the bag may be employed, in which case it may not be necessary to overfold the mouth portion of the bag to provide a suitable closure.

Likewise, while the apparatus of this invention has been illustrated in conjunction with six stapler members, it will be understood that a lesser number, for example two stapler members, may be sufficient provided that the desired closure of the mouth portion of the bag can be performed satisfactorily.

Thus, it will be apparent that there has been shown and described an apparatus and a method for closing bags and forming a carrying handle therefor simultaneously which fulfills all of the objectives and advantages sought therefore. Many changes, modifications, and variations of the present apparatus and method will become apparent to those skilled in the art after considering the present specification and the accompanying drawings. All such changes, modifications and variations which do not depart from the spirit and scope of this invention are deemed to be covered by my invention which is limited only by the following claims:

I claim:

1. A bag closing and handle forming apparatus comprising in combination:

(a) a stationary horizontal base,

(b) a knife detachably secured to a knife holding and carrying means, said knife being positioned in a plane that is substantially perpendicular to the plane of said base, and said means being pivotally mounted on said base at an acute angle with respect to said base,

(c) an uprightly disposed lever having an upper free end and a lower end pivotally and slidably mounted over said means,

((1) a siot in said base located to register with the cutting edge of said knife when said edge is received within said slot,

(e) at least two stapler members mounted on said base,

(f) a pair of stapler actuating means secured to said knife holding and carrying means and being operably associated with said stapler members, whereby, upon moving said lever frontwardly and downwardly, said knife and said stapler members are activated simultaneously to close a bag inserted into said apparatus and form a handslot in said bag.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said knife is of curved shape.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the cutting edge of said knife is serrated.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the cutting edge of said knife is disposed at an acute angle relative to the horizontal.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said knife is of curved shape and has a serrated cutting edge disposed at an acute angle relative to the horizontal.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said slot is located in the central portion of said base intermediate between each of said stapler members.

7. A bag closing and handle forming apparatus comprising in combination:

(a) a stationary horizontal base,

(b) a curved knife having a serrated cutting edge disposed at an acute angle relative to the horizontal, said knife being detachably secured to a knife holder and positioned in a plane that is substantially perpendicular to the plane of said base,

(c) a carrier for said knife holder pivotally mounted on said base and inclined at an acute angle thereto,

(d) a substantially vertically disposed, downwardly and frontwardly movable, hand-operated lever, the lower end of said lever being pivotally and slidably mounted over said carrier,

(e) a coil spring connected to the lower end of said lever to facilitate return movement of said lever to its substantially upright position,

(f) an arcuate slot in said base centrally located to register with said cutting edge of said knife when said cutting edge is received within said slot,

(g) a plurality of stapler members mounted on said base in parallel relationship with respect to each other, at least two of said stapler members being disposed in spaced relation with said slot located therebetween,

(h) a pair of horizontally extending stapler actuating pins, each disposed outwardly of said carrier and secured thereto, said pins being operably associated with said stapler members through intermediate stapler actuating plates,

(i) a stripping means mounted horizontally adjacent said slot above said base and spaced a short distance therefrom suflicient to insert a bag between said stripping means and said base, whereby, upon moving said lever frontwardly and downwardly, said knife and said stapler members are activated simultaneously to cut out a handslot in a bag inserted into said apparatus and close the bag in one operative stroke of said lever.

8. A process for closing a bag containing purchased goods therein and forming a handle therefor so as to reduce pilferage in stores and providing a carrying means for said bag which comprises folding an elongated cardboard blank along the lateral center thereof to form two leaves of substantially equal size, the width of said blank being about the same as the width of the bag, inserting top edge portion of the bag between said leaves, securing said blank to said bag by stapling said two leaves together with said portion of the bag therebetween, and cutting out simultaneously with stapling a lateral handslot through central portions of said leaves and said top portion of the bag therebetween.

9. The process of claim 8 wherein the top edge portion of the bag is overfolded across its entire width before being inserted between said leaves.

10. The process of claim 8 wherein said handslot is of arcuate shape.

11. A process for closing an open-mouth paper bag containing purchased goods therein and forming a handle therefor so as to reduce pilferage in stores and providing a carrying means for said bag which comprises folding an elongated reinforcing cardboard blank along the lateral center thereof to form two leaves substantially equal in size, the width of said blank being somewhat less than the width of said bag, overfolding the edge portion of said bag horizontally across its entire width, inserting the overfolded top edge portion of the bag between said leaves, securing said blank to said bag by stapling said two leaves together with said portion of the bag therebetween, and cutting out simultaneously with stapling a lateral arcuate handslot through central portions of said leaves and said top portion of the bag inserted therebetween.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 10/1941 Clancy 53134 6/1959 Langdon 53--14 

11. A PROCESS FOR CLOSING AN OPEN-MOUTH PAPER BAG CONTAINING PURCHASED GOODS THEREIN AND FORMING A HANDLE THEREFOR SO AS TO REDUCE PILFERAGE IN STORES AND PROVIDING A CARRYING MEANS FOR SAID BAG WHICH COMPRISES FOLDING AN ELONGATED REINFORCING CARDBOARD BLANK ALONG THE LATERAL CENTER THEREOF TO FORM TWO LEAVES SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL IN SIZE, THE WIDTH OF SAID BLANK BEING SOMEWHAT LESS THAN THE WIDTH OF SAID BAG, OVERFOLDING THE EDGE PORTION OF SAID BAG HORIZONTALLY ACROSS ITS ENTIRE WIDTH, INSERTING THE OVERFOLDED TOP EDGE PORTION OF THE BAG BETWEEN SAID LEAVES, SECURING SAID BLANK TO SAID BAG BY STAPLING SAID 